Page - 58 - in Jacopo Strada and Cultural Patronage at the Imperial Court - The Antique as Innovation, Volume 1

Chapter �58 would execute a design for the Antiquarium of the Munich Residenz that is not without merit. This and other instances of Strada’s interest in architecture will be discussed in detail in Chapters 5–10. It is reasonable to assume that Strada received his initial training chiefly in his hometown, therefore within an artistic milieu that was largely determined by the shining example afforded by Giulio Romano’s achievements [Figs. 1.9– 1.10, 1.17; 1.19–1.21]. It is self-evident that his artistic development was strongly influenced by this erudite and versatile master, whose works Strada would al- ways admire and propagate, and whose graphic remains he would later bring into his possession. Perhaps even more telling is the fact that the large-scale copying or reproducing of drawings by tracing them with the aid of blackened paper, a technique typical for Strada’s workshop, was first practiced, according to Armenini, in Giulio’s studio.32 It is also borne out by Strada’s own style, in as far at least as it is possible to judge this from the few independent drawings that can be securely attributed to him. Sometimes these seem in fact to come even closer to that of Giulio’s temporary collaborator, Francesco Primaticcio, whom the very young Strada probably had seen at work in the Palazzo del Te [Figs. 1.19–1.21], and whose more mature and independent creations he may have admired later in France.33 32 Armenini 1587, pp. 76–77. 33 Primaticcio was a.o. responsible for the Camera degli Stucchi; on Strada’s possible visit to Paris and Fontainebleau, see below, Ch. 3.4. Figure �.�8 Titian, portrait of Giulio Romano, ca 1536–1540; Mantua, Palazzo del Te. Figure �.�7 Giulio Romano, ceiling of the Camera delle Aquile, Palazzo del Te, Mantua.